


Eskimo Kisses and Christmas Wishes

by philsdrill



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Amazingphil - Freeform, Comfort, Fluff, Homophobia, M/M, Phan - Freeform, Phan Fluff, Phan Smut, Phanfiction, Smut, danisnotonfire - Freeform, phanfic, phanfluff, phansmut, tw; homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2017-12-29
Packaged: 2019-02-23 15:51:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13193406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/philsdrill/pseuds/philsdrill
Summary: Dan gets a nasty surprise when he at last comes out to his family just before Christmas. Alone and out in the cold, he makes the trip up to Manchester where he spends Christmas with Phil and his family. It’s a struggle for Dan, being in such a loving family environment when he has just been evicted from his own, but Phil does his best to look after Dan and cheer him up as best he can.





	Eskimo Kisses and Christmas Wishes

**Author's Note:**

> I'm working on uploading my fics from tumblr to here, so if you happen to have seen it before, I posted this in March 2016 on there. Also if anyone's interested in following me on tumblr - I'm more active on there and there's more fics - you can find me at [philsdrill](https://philsdrill.tumblr.com).
> 
> Small amount of smut which isn't majorly important to the plot - it is marked at start and end if you wish to skip this bit.

**Christmas Eve Eve:**

**Dan’s POV:**

I’d got to my family house six hours ago. I’d planned on staying for the next week, but I was leaving now. I thought I could finally come out to them as gay, after all these years, but it couldn’t have gone worse. Now I was standing in the dark driveway, my suitcase in one hand, my phone in the other. They’d practically disowned me, telling me that I wasn’t welcome to stay for Christmas after all. They were even so heartless as to force me out in the freezing cold at 11pm at night.

Slowly trudging in the direction of the train station, my feet already going numb from the cold, I did the only thing that came to mind. I called Phil. All I wanted was to be with him right now, to cry on his shoulder, to have him hug me and tell me everything’s going to be alright. I needed my boyfriend and I was going to do whatever it took to get to see him.

“Hey Dan,” Phil picked up, his voice cheery.

“Umm…” I hesitated, suddenly at a loss for words. How the hell did I tell him what’d happened?

“Dan? You okay?” Phil said, now sounding a little bit concerned.

“No.”

“Dan, what’s wrong? Wait, did you come out?”

“Yeah,” I replied, biting my lip in attempt to stop the emotion overwhelming me.

“It didn’t go well, did it?” he asked worriedly.

“No, not at all well. They chucked me out,” I stated.

“Aww shit,” Phil swore, something he rarely ever did.

I heard a distant shout of “Language, Phillip,” from Phil’s end of the line. He ignored it.

“Yeah…” I replied grimly.

“Are you going back to London then?” Phil asked, “I’ll get a cab down and join you.”

“Could I… come up to your place?” I asked hesitantly, “I just really want to be with you but I don’t want to ruin your family Christmas.”

“Of course, Dan. My parents will love to see you again,” he told me, “My mum was asking for you just minutes after I arrived.”

“Are you sure it’s okay?”

“Yes, it’s fine,” he insisted, “Now, how are you getting here?”

“I’m on my way to the train station so a train, I guess,” I told him, “There’s no cabs out here this late anyway.”

“Maybe get a train and then get a taxi from one of the bigger stations,” Phil recommended, “You’re gonna want to sleep and I don’t think a train’s the best place for that. Plus, the taxi’ll be warm, more private and you’ll get here sooner. If you don’t have the cash on you, I can pay when you get here.”

“Okay,” I said, realising I was practically at the station, “I’m at the train station now. I might call you when I’m in the taxi.”

“That’s cool, but I’d rather you slept if you can,” Phil said, “Call me, when you’re outside though. I’ll stay up for you, but that way we won’t wake my parents up with the doorbell.”

“Okay. Thank you so much. I love you, Phil.”

“I love you too, Dan. See you soon.”

Sliding my phone into my pocket, I looked up at the departures board. It’s orange letters glowed in the semi-darkness, alerting me that there was a suitable train in only five minutes time. The station abandoned, there was no one to fight me for a place on the cold metal benches on the platform. I sat on one, miserably staring at the tracks.

My breath made clouds of steam as it hit the cold air. I rubbed my hands together to try and get some feeling back into them. I wished I’d brought gloves, but then I’d never planned this journey when I packed my case back in London.

Eventually, after what felt like forever, I saw the cables trembling, a sign that the train was close. I then heard the rattling of the train coming along the tracks. The train rounded the corner, it’s yellowy-white headlights illuminating the darkness. It looked like something out of a horror film. That thought made me shudder. I didn’t want to think about things like that, not when I was alone.

The doors opened and a small handful of people got off. I lifted my case up into the train, stepping up after it. The carriage was almost empty, only one or two other people there. I distanced myself as far away from them as possible and slid down into a seat. I sunk my head into my hands, my brain taken over by sad thoughts. Why did this happen to me? Why couldn’t my family accept me? Would they ever take me back? Did I want them to? I sobbed silently into my hands, the only sounds I made drowned out by those of the train starting up.

As the train trundled off into the night, its steady rhythm started winding its way into my brain, the repetitive rumbling making me feel even more alone.

“Excuse me Sir, Do you have a ticket?” A voice bored through the haze. I ignored it, must be talking to one of the other passengers.

“Sir,” the voice repeated. Was it me they were talking to?

A gentle tap on my shoulder answered my question. I shot upright, looking to the source of the voice, the ticket conductor who was standing next to me.

“Oh, um, sorry,” I stuttered, shocked, “What was it you were asking?”

“Do you have a ticket?” He asked slowly.

“Ticket? No. I don’t have a ticket,” I replied, still a bit dazed, “Can I buy one?”

“Yeah, where are you going?” he said, now sounding a tad impatient.

I told him the name of the station, and that I only wanted a single. He printed off the ticket while I dug around in my pockets and wallet trying to find the change. I handed it over, he handed me my ticket, and he got on his way. I sat back against the seat, internally cringing at my actions of the last two minutes. I had been so out of it; I didn’t know he was talking to me and then I ordered my ticket like I’d never been on a train in my life. God, why did I have to be suck a fuck-up?

Eventually the train announcement read out that the next stop would be mine.

“Please mind the gap when alighting from this train,” it reminded me, now for the fifth or sixth time on this short journey.

I stood up, swaying as the train continued to move, my suitcase swerving behind me. I made my way to the door where I waited for the train to finish slowing down. It drew up at the platform and I prodded the button to open the doors. They beeped and parted before me, allowing me to step out into the station. Fortunately, I knew there was a taxi rank outside this station and I was pretty sure they would do long distances.

The first taxi driver refused when I told him I wanted to go to Manchester but he pointed me to one who hopefully would. I trundled my suitcase along to where the said taxi was parked.

“Where d'you want to go?” the driver asked me as I opened the passenger door to speak to him.

“Up near Manchester,” I told him, “Or is that too far? One of the drivers over there said you might go up there?”

“That’s fine,” he told me, “Get in, make yourself comfy. It’s a good couple of hours.”

“Thank you,” I thanked him, getting into the back.

“It’s alright. It’s my job,” he replied with a smile, “Now where is it you’re looking to go near Manchester?”

I told him the town where Phil’s parents live, but I couldn’t remember the address.

“I’ll get the address,” I told him, texting Phil to ask.

Phil replied in less than a minute, telling me the address and also wishing me a good journey.

I read out the address to the driver, who put it into his sat nav system.

Now he knew where we were going, he decided to introduce himself, “I’m John, by the way. Thought I’d let you know seeing as we’re spending the next few hours together.”

“I’m Dan,” I told him, a hint of a smile on my face, glad he seemed nice, “Nice to meet you.”

“So, Dan, are you going up to see family for Christmas?”

“Not exactly. I’m going to see my partner and their family,” I told him, careful not to slip in any pronouns in case he was like my parents.

“Been to see your family already then?”

“Umm…” I didn’t know what to say, “Kinda. It didn’t really go well.”

“I’m sorry to hear that. I won’t ask but I hope you have a good time up North though,” he said his kind words making me feel emotional again.

“Thanks,” I said, trying not to let the emotions get to me again.

“I’m going to try and get some sleep if you don’t mind,” I told him, “Could you maybe wake me up about fifteen minutes before we get there? Just shout at me or something.”

“Yeah, sure,” he replied, “I’ll give you some peace now.”

I rested my head on a scrumpled up hoodie that I had pulled from my suitcase and tried to let myself drift off to sleep. My brain was a mess with the very recent memories of being shouted at, being told to leave, being forced out of my own home. I couldn’t cry, I wouldn’t let myself, not here. I tried to block them out by thinking of Phil: his happy scent, his cheery smile, the way his eyes lit up, how warm his arms were….

Eventually I fell asleep.

—–

John woke me up, having turned around while stopped at a set of traffic lights to call my name loudly. I quickly opened my eyes and let him know that I was awake.

“That’s us about fifteen minutes away,” he told me.

“Wow, thank you,” I told him, stretching and rubbing my eyes, “I’ll call Phil and tell him I’m nearly there.”

I pulled my phone out my pocket, relieved to see it still had enough battery. The time was nearly three am and my tired eyes protested as the bright light from my screen hit them. I poked Phil’s number in my contact list and waited for him to pick up.

“Dan!” Phil exclaimed as soon as the connection was made, “How are you? Are you nearly here?”

“Yeah, I’m about fifteen minutes away, maybe less now,” I told him, avoiding the question of how I was because the honest answer was not too good.

“Good. Good. I’m gonna give you a big hug as soon as you get in the door,” he replied, “Did you sleep the whole way?”

“Yeah, pretty much,” I told him, “And I can’t wait for your hug, babe.”

“See you soon then, Dan. I love you,” Phil said, getting ready to end the call.

“Okay. Love you too,” I said, waiting a moment or two before pressing the end call button.

I put my phone away, only now realising I’d have to engage in some more conversation with John the taxi driver.

“Is Phil your boyfriend?” he asked me.

I froze. Shit. Shit. Shit. I hadn’t meant to let that slip. I couldn’t just go around letting strangers know I was gay. I couldn’t even tell the people who were supposed to love me. My mouth fell open, unable to think of a response.

“Y..yeahh..” I said quietly, wary of his reaction.

“That’s cool, well I hope you have a good Christmas with him,” John told me.

“You.. you don’t h…hate me because I’m gay,” I stuttered, surprised.

“I don’t have any reason to hate you, son. You haven’t done anything to bother me,” he informed me, “You’ve been a pleasant passenger. Whether you do girls or guys or anyone for that matter doesn’t bother me.”

“I… umm.. thanks,” I said, feeling tears welling in my eyes. I wish my parents were like him, not hating me for who I was.

I buried my face in my hoodie, trying to muffle my quiet snuffles. John didn’t seem to notice, at least I didn’t think he did. He just carried on driving. I wasn’t paying enough attention to notice the sounds of him opening and closing the glove box and getting something out.

“Dan,” he spoke, making me lift my head up only to see his hand reaching back with a packet of tissues, “It’s alright. Have some tissues - sounds like you might need them.”

“Thanks,” I mumbled taking them from him and making some attempt to dry my eyes and blow my nose.

We pulled up outside Phil’s parents’ house. I thanked John, telling him I’d really appreciated him getting me here. I paid the fare which was quite a sum. He tried giving me a discount but I insisted that he’d been so amazing he deserved it. I left with a note of his number; he insisted on giving it to me in case I ever needed to make that journey again.

Phil had obviously been watching out a window, as the front door opened when I was halfway up the garden path. When I saw him I started running, dragging my suitcase behind me. I ran straight into his open arms, receiving an ‘oomph’ as a greeting.

—–

**Phil’s POV:**

I wrapped my arms around Dan, giving him the big hug I’d promised him on the phone. I let him collapse into me, my arms on his back about the only thing keeping him on his feet. He was crying, but that was nothing I hadn’t predicted.

“Dan it’s alright, I’m here,” I told him trying to be of some consolation, gently rubbing his back.

“I don’t know how they just fucking chucked me out,” he wailed, “I didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I know Dan. It’s not your fault; you didn’t do anything wrong, they did. Don’t blame yourself,” I told him.

Dan sniffed, then was overcome by another bout of sobbing, “My taxi driver was so nice about it. I didn’t mean to tell him I was gay; it just sorta came out. He said how I was a pleasant passenger and my sexuality didn’t change his opinion of me. I wish my parents were like that.”

“I wish they were too,” I told him, “That was horrible what they did and I hope they regret their decision. I’m glad you’re here though because I think you need lots of hugs.”

Dan nodded at this, making me laugh a little. He laughed a tiny bit too when he realised what he’d done.

“It’s after three,” I told him, “How about we go to bed and snuggle? You look tired, and you’ll feel better in the morning.”

“Okay,” he agreed.

I picked up Dan’s suitcase for him and we went upstairs to my room. I laid it down in the corner and turned my attention back to Dan. He did look exhausted. I let him strip down to his underwear; I don’t think either of us had the motivation to find him pyjamas.

I was already in my pyjamas so, as soon as Dan was ready, we got into my bed. I took my turn at being big spoon, my body curved protectively around Dan’s. I brought the duvet in close around us to keep out the draughts and winter chills.

It wasn’t long before the two of us dozed off into a pleasantly peaceful sleep.

—–

**Christmas Eve:**

**Phil’s POV:**

I woke up with Dan’s face nuzzled into my chest; he must’ve turned around at some point during the night. His cute snores told me he was still fast asleep. Looking at the clock and seeing it was after twelve o'clock, I wondered if I should wake him up. My parents would likely have got up hours ago and I was glad they’d let us sleep in.

A knock at the door was followed by my mum’s soft voice, “Phil, are you awake? Can I open the door?”

“Uhh…” I said hesitantly, making sure the duvet was covering enough of the almost naked Dan next to me, “Yeah.”

“I’ve left the breakfast stuff out for you guys,” she told me, walking into the room, keeping quiet as she saw Dan was still asleep.

“Thanks,” I told her, “I’ll wake Dan up and we’ll be down for it soon.”

“Is he alright?” she asked. I’d told her what happened last night after Dan had called me.

“I don’t really know,” I told her honestly, “He was crying a lot last night. I’m guessing it’ll be quite a sore subject.”

“Alright, well I’ll leave you to it,” she said as we both saw Dan stirring a little.

The door clicked shut and I turned to Dan, who sleepily opened one eye.

“Were you talkin’?” he mumbled, “Woke me up.”

“Yeah, sorry; my mum came in,” I told him, “I was about to wake you up anyway though.”

“Mmm… okay,” he mumbled, still sleepily.

“There’s breakfast downstairs for us,” I told him, “But first, how are you feeling?”

“I don’t really know… Kinda sad, kinda happy. Very emotional, slightly horny,” he told me.

“Okay, bit of a strange mixture,” I laughed, “I’m gonna try my best to cheer you up though.”

“You’re the only reason the 'kinda happy’ is even there,” he said, “Well, and the slightly horny.”

“Okay, well I can’t sort out the slightly horny as my parents are here, but seeing as it’s only slightly, maybe you can wait until we get home?” I suggested.

“I guess we’ll see,” he replied with a little laugh.

It wasn’t something I really thought about when I agreed to Dan coming up here, how long we’d manage to cope without sex. We did it pretty much every day at home, but there was no way I could fuck Dan with the knowledge my parents were in the house and could hear or walk in. I felt like we’d be very sexually frustrated with almost constant erections by the time we went home. Oh God, even thinking about that was making my dick twitch, better think of something else.

“You want to throw some clothes on and we can go get breakfast?” I suggested to Dan.

“Mmmpphh, okaayyy,” he grumbled, slowly sitting up and stretching.

Five minutes later we tiredly entered the kitchen, both now fully dressed, but in comfy clothes as we weren’t planning on going out. 

My mum, knowing us well, had left out the cereal and two bowls. A bowl each, we went to the living room and ate our cereal while watching some of the Christmas specials on TV. A few hours later, we were still there, our cereal bowls now abandoned on the coffee table. One Christmas film had come on, and then another. I was feeling festive. I had Dan in my arms. I was happy.

—–

**Christmas Day:**

**Phil’s POV:**

“Dan! Wake up! It’s Christmas!” I yelled excitedly, trying to persuade Dan to get up.

“Okay, I’m getting up,” Dan replied tiredly, “I still don’t get how you can be excited this early.”

“Because it’s Christmas!!” I exclaimed, “Christmas is exciting.”

“Might be for you,” Dan mumbled, “You still have a family.”

Oh dear, it looked like somebody wasn’t feeling very festive this morning. I wished he was here under different circumstances.

“I’m sorry,” I told him, sliding my arm under him and pulling him into a cuddle, “But does the thought of the food not even make it slightly exciting.”

“I guess,” he muttered.

Dan needed cheering up. The easiest way of doing that was doing something he saw as stupid. I had an idea. I was going to put on the Christmassiest outfit I could muster and then wrap tinsel around myself and dance to Christmas songs. Seemed like a plan.

Placing a kiss on Dan’s lips, I got out of bed and headed in the direction of my wardrobe. I stripped out of my pyjamas and put on a fresh pair of boxers, ones with a festive print. As I expected, Dan was watching me intently from the bed, possibly daydreaming about my bum or something, I wouldn’t put it past him.

Opening the wardrobe, where I had put all my clothes for the week, I pulled out two Christmas jumpers, leaving one on the bed and putting the other on. I grabbed a nearby bit of tinsel and wrapped it around my neck like a scarf, trying to ignore how tickley it felt.

Opening up my music app on my phone, Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas is You” was already showing on screen. Perfect. I hit the play button and started dancing around the room. I felt ridiculous but I saw a small smile growing on Dan’s face. By the time the song ended, I had reduced Dan to a fit of laughter. Mission successful, I thought.

“Come on, get up,” I encouraged him again, “We need to be up and dressed before all the family start arriving, and my parents might want some help with the cooking.”

Dan went over to his suitcase and pulled out some clothes, black boxers, black jeans and a mostly black Christmas jumper.

“That’s seriously your most festive outfit? How about a brighter jumper?” I teased him, pointing to the second jumper that I had pulled out.

“But it’s not black,” he complained.

“It’s Christmas, Dan, please,” I begged him; he didn’t know how much I liked seeing him in something colourful from time to time.

“Alright,” he agreed begrudgingly.

Dan picked up his boxers and was about to put them on when I stopped him, “Hold on. How about a festive pair? Just for today?” I suggested, “I have some spares.”

Before he had time to respond, I rifled through my stuff and thrust a pair of festive red and white snowflake patterned ones at him, “Here you go.”

“Uhh..” Dan looked at them suspiciously, “They might be a bit small.”

“Don’t make excuses, we wear each other’s underwear half the time anyway. Think I haven’t noticed? Mine are tighter on you; your butt looks so much better in them,” I told him.

Dan laughed in response and gave in, taking them from me. I watched as he pulled them on, the stretchy red fabric clinging to the curves of his cheeks.

“Mmm,” I said thirstily, “Those look good on you.”

“No getting horny now, Phil,” Dan said, bending over to grab some socks from his case.

My eyes had no choice but to focus on the mass of red sticking up in the air, “Ughh, stop being such a tease.”

Eventually Dan was dressed in black jeans, one of my colourful Christmas sweaters, and of course, the festive underwear. Only I would know about that one, but the secrecy of them came with a special, almost mischievous feeling - that no one else knew the wonder he kept in his trousers, except me of course.

The next few hours passed by in a rush of carrot peeling, potato mashing, last minute present wrapping for my numerous aunts and uncles. Neither of us really got a chance to be alone, to talk in private. I needed to know Dan’s stance on how much interaction with my family he could cope with, before they got here.

I excused myself from table setting fifteen minutes before the guests were due to start arriving and dragged Dan with me up to my room.

“Right,” I started, “People are going to start arriving in about ten minutes and I just wanted to ask how you’re feeling about the whole thing first. They’re all really accepting and will have no problem with you, or us for that matter. Do you think you’ll be okay?”

“Yeah, probably,” Dan said, though I didn’t entirely believe him. I knew he could put on a facade to hide his emotions when he needed to and I felt that is what he would try to do. He wasn’t alright and I knew that.

“If you need to you can excuse yourself and come up here,” I told him, “I get this won’t be easy for you, but I’m here for you and my parents will understand too, okay.”

Dan nodded and I pulled him into a loving hug, then turned to plant a kiss on his lips.

About half an hour was spent greeting various family members as they arrived and introducing Dan to them and them to him. Some of them knew him from my videos but I doubted he would remember which of my aunties were which. That happens when you get introduced to too many people at once.

Once everyone had arrived and sat down at the table, we started the meal. I was sitting next to Dan, which I was glad about. My parents often liked to encourage the couples to mix up so they could talk to other family members, but they had put Dan next to me. Maybe they sensed he would need me by his side through this.

He was fine while we ate starter, but by the time the main course came around I could tell all the cheery family vibes were starting to get the better of him. Everyone had started to talk about funny moments from our pasts, and although it was quite amusing, Dan was probably feeling really left out. He was certainly struggling to keep up the smile.

“I don’t feel so good,” Dan mumbled to me, suddenly getting up from his seat.

Deep down, I knew this would get too much for him, having all my family here, who all accepted me for who I was and welcomed Dan with open arms when they heard he was my boyfriend.

As he started heading towards the door, I realised I should get up and follow him. On my way out, I spoke to my mum, explaining why we were going.

“Dan says he doesn’t feel too good. I’m guessing this is all a bit much for him,” I explained speedily, gesturing to our happy family around the table, “I’ll try and be back soon.”

I hurried up the stairs after Dan. By the time I got to my room, he was already sitting on my bed, crying.

“Dan,” I said, sitting down next to him and placing a hand comfortingly on his back, “You wanna talk about it?”

“I just… How are your family all so accepting?” he asked, amidst his sobs, “I… Why can’t mine be like that too?”

“I don’t know, Dan. I wish your family all accepted you too. I wish I could help,” I told him, “Do you want a hug?”

“Yeah,” he answered me, timidly.

Gently pulling him onto my lap so we were closer, I wrapped my arms around him and let him bury his face in my shoulder.

“It’s alright to cry,” I told him as he tried to hold back his tears.

“Thanks,” he mumbled, now crying more freely.

A few minutes passed by, me holding Dan and trying to comfort him by rubbing circles on his back. Slowly his tears were drying up and his sobs were less violent.

A gentle knock at the door interrupted.

“Boys, everything alright?” My mum’s voice asked, the door opening a crack and her eyes peering in.

“Yes,” I replied, giving her a 'please just give us some peace’ look, “I’ll be back down soon.”

I returned my attention to Dan as soon as I heard her footsteps retreating down the stairs. He’d stopped crying. I wouldn’t say he looked happy, but he looked a little happier.

“I should probably go down and finish my turkey,” I told him, “Take five minutes to wash your face and whatever and come back down if you feel up to it.”

“Okay,” he replied.

I placed a soft kiss on his lips before turning to leave and go back downstairs.

Back in the dining room, I told my mum that Dan was alright and that he might reappear in five minutes. She didn’t seem to completely believe me, having seen him crying into my shoulder only minutes earlier. I returned to my seat, where I proceeded to gobble up what was left on my plate. I kept an eye on the time, seeing how long it had been since I left Dan. I finished my plate as those who were having seconds finished theirs. It had been ten minutes since I left Dan so I thought I’d better go see how he was doing.

“Call me down when you’re serving pudding,” I told my mum on my way out.

I took Dan’s plate and poured him a glass of water from the kitchen to have instead of the wine at his place. I carried it up to my room, where he was pacing up and down.

He thanked me as I laid the food down on the desk, me trying to figure out why he hadn’t come back down.

“Anything else bothering you?” I asked as he stopped his pacing and sat down at his desk.

“Not really, I just needed five minutes to get myself together and then I felt like it would be awkward walking back in,” he explained.

“We’ll go back down for pudding then, yeah?” I checked with him.

“Yeah.”

Dan finished his turkey, potatoes and brussel sprouts, hardly leaving a single morsel of food on the plate. I knew that my family would probably just be having a chat as they waited for pudding.

“Do you want go back down?” I asked him.

“Yeah,” he replied hesitantly.

“It’s okay if you don’t want to,” I told him, “But we do have some pretty good puddings lined up.”

“I want to. I like pudding,” he said, hints of a smile finding his face.

“Come on then,” I said, picking up his plate and creeping towards the door, “We don’t want them to have eaten it all.”

Dan got up and followed me. I dropped off his plate in the kitchen and took his hand as we walked back into the dining room. Dan ducked his head down in embarrassment as we walked towards the table, obviously feeling like my family would be judging him for disappearing. Sitting back down, I shuffled my chair closer to Dan’s so I could talk to him easier.

“Dan, don’t worry about them judging you. We’re such a weird bunch that we don’t judge anyone for anything,” I told him, quietly.

Only seconds after I said this my uncle, at the other side of the table, let out a loud fake snore as part of a story he was telling to Martyn. The entire table turned to look at him, and after a second of stunned silence, burst into laughter. Even Dan laughed a little at the situation, which I was happy to see.

We got through the rest of lunch just fine. I may have over-estimated the capacity of my stomach and had thirds of pudding, but I’d have the next few hours sitting on the sofa like a beached whale to recover.

It came to present-opening time and I was still digesting all the pudding. Dan and I had ended up on a seat that was only really meant for one person, but it was big enough for us both, given he sat on my lap. It was a good excuse to hug him every so often too.

As you would expect, I received a gift of some shape or form from all of my family. Dan and I had exchanged gifts back in London, not expecting to spend Christmas together.

I felt bad for Dan because no one had given him anything and the room was full of people opening presents. Everyone was almost done when my mum came over with an envelope. It had 'Dan’ written on the front.

She handed it to Dan, telling him, “This is from me and Phil’s Dad. We would’ve gone out and bought you an actual present if we’d had time, but this’ll have to do.”

My mum returned to her seat across the room and both her and I watched Dan open the envelope and get the card out. He opened the card and held it so I could read it too.

_Dan,_

_We didn’t have the chance to go and get you a present so here is a little note instead. We want to say that you’re like another son to us now and you’re welcome here whenever. You make Phil very happy and we love to see that. I’ve been asking him to bring you to see us again, and although it wasn’t under the best circumstances that you came, we’re glad to have you here for Christmas and you’re welcome to come back next year. Merry Christmas!_

_Lots of love,_

The card was signed by both my parents and that was it.

I felt Dan sobbing as he shut the card. He shouted a “Thank you,” across to my mum with tears in his eyes but a smile on his face. He turned around and buried his face into my chest, trying to hide from having my family see him cry. I hugged him lovingly, trying to decide whether it would be a better idea for us to leave the room. A loud sniff from Dan earned him a few sidelong glances and I made my mind up. Sliding out from underneath him, I stood up and he got up to follow, his head ducked down again, in attempt to hide his face with his hair.

I led him up to my room where we sat down on my bed as his crying took him over.

“Does your mum really love me?” he choked out, “I’m not that amazing.”

“Yes, you are,” I told him, “You’re fucking wonderful.”

I saw the shock spread across Dan’s face as I swore.

“It’s true. You know I don’t use swear words lightly,” I reminded him.

“But how? I can’t even control my fucking emotions,” he groaned, “I’m a fail at everything and even my own family hate me. Your family are just gonna see me as that guy who cried all the time…”

I cut him off, “You’re not a fail at everything. I think all your subscribers prove that you’re doing something right. As for crying, you have a reason to. Your family don’t have any legitimate reason to hate you though. I love you and maybe I need to tell you how amazing you are more often, so you don’t forget it.”

I kissed him on the lips, a simple kiss that without any tongue. He must’ve liked it though, because seconds later he was leaning in for another. This time he was taking it in the direction of making out. As much as I was enjoying it, I knew we’d have to stop before the inevitable happened - I did not want to have a boner to deal with, or two for that matter.

I gently pushed Dan away, “As much as I’d love to continue, I don’t think it’s really the best idea.”

Dan nodded in agreement. I shuffled away and grabbed my laptop from the bedside table.

“We can just stay up here a while,” I told him, “The conversation generally gets a bit boring anyway.”

“You sure? I don’t mind going back down,” Dan said, his expression not matching his words.

“I think we both know that’s a lie,” I called him out, “We’re staying here.”

“Dammit, I’m a crap liar,” he said, amused, “I would rather stay here. I just don’t want you to miss out on your family time.”

“Trust me, it’s fine,” I insisted.

“But you have a family, you should make the most of it,” he told me, a sadness in his eyes.

“I know, but at the moment, you’re my highest priority so I’m staying up here with you,” I told him; feeling slightly guilty.

“Okayyy,” he gave in.

I placed my laptop across both our knees, opening up the lid.

“What d'you want to do?” I asked Dan, “Go on tumblr? Watch anime? Youtube? Netflix?”

“Maybe some youtube?” he replied, “See what our friends are up to.”

“Cool,” I said, opening up my subscription feed.

We sat watching youtube for around the next hour. Dan and I were pretty close; I had one arm around him and it was comfortable. My other hand played with his on my lap. I wasn’t really expecting a knock at the door and my auntie asking if she could come in.

“Yeah,” I replied hesitantly; there was no way I was moving from Dan and I’s comfortable position.

The door opened and her face peered round. Dan tried to move but I put my hand on his knee to tell him it was alright to stay where he was. A brief look of surprise crossed her face as her eyes took in Dan and I, but it was soon replaced with one of approval when she realised we hadn’t been doing anything more than cuddling.

“I’m just here to say goodbye, Phil. That’s me and your uncle away,” she told me.

“Ahh, goodbye,” I replied cheerily, “It’s been nice to see you again. Have a safe trip home!”

“And it’s been nice meeting you, Dan,” she said, turning to Dan, “I’ll hopefully see you again sometime!?”

Dan looked incredibly shocked at being spoken to.

“Y-yeah,” he stuttered, surprised, “It’s been nice meeting you too.”

My auntie wished us goodbye one more time before leaving and shutting the door.

We spent a few hours catching up on some TV shows on Netflix, still closely cuddled up together. My mum eventually came up to tell me that everyone else was leaving and I was to come down and say goodbye.

I told Dan he didn’t have to come down, but I think he did it to be polite. Maybe he knew that he’d be seeing more of my family in the future and wanted to make the best impression he could. He plastered another smile on his face as he said goodbye, even receiving a hug from my gran and great-aunt. That took him by surprise and he was unsure how react, but I think he appreciated the gesture - maybe it made him feel a little bit more loved.

There wasn’t a lot of the evening left by that time, with the meal having taken up most of the afternoon and then there’d been all that time we spent watching Netflix. Dan and I made a quick stop at the kitchen to grab some late-night cereal, before heading upstairs to bed.

—–

**Boxing Day:**

**Phil’s POV:**

The next day brought with it a surprise. I didn’t see it until I got up and opened the curtains. Snow.

“DAN, IT’S SNOWING!” I said excitedly to his half asleep form.

“Okay cool,” he replied, “But I need sleep.”

“No you don’t, you’ve slept for ages,” I argued, “And it might melt.”

“I’m not going to be able to get out of this one am I?” Dan asked, giving in.

“Nope,” I replied, “Come on, put some warm clothes on, let’s eat breakfast quickly and then DO YOU WANNA BUILD A SNOWMAN?”

“Ughh… Phil, no; it’s too early for Frozen references. Anyway, I was thinking more an igloo,” Dan replied, getting out of bed and rifling through his clothes, “Then it’s actually useful for something. Well, we can go inside it.”

“That sounds pretty cool,” I said, “Do you think we’ll be able to get the roof to stay up though?”

“We can try,” Dan said, pulling on a long-sleeved t-shirt, “Babe, do you have spare joggies? All I brought were pjs and jeans - wasn’t really expecting snow.”

“Yeah, I think so,” I said hunting through my stuff to find a pair, “Here you go.”

Once we were kitted out in the most snow-appropriate clothes we could muster, we went downstairs and out into the back garden, putting the snow first, even before breakfast. As Dan shut the door behind us, I reached down and scooped up a handful of snow. He turned around and I smooshed it into his face.

“Got you,” I giggled.

“Philll,” Dan complained.

“Sorry,” I apologised, taking his face between my hands and giving his cheeks a gentle squeeze, “C’mon, let’s go build that igloo.”

I turned away from Dan and started leading him to where I thought would be a good spot for building an igloo. Barely seconds after I had turned around I felt a sudden cold wet impact against the back of my head. After the ‘thud’ I could feel it melting almost immediately, droplets of meltwater dribbling down my neck.

“Dan,” I groaned, shuddering as it melted down my back, “Let’s make an igloo now; we can have a snowball fight later.”

A mischievous grin lingered on Dan’s face as he watched me shake the snow off, “Okay. You’re in for it though.”

“We’ll see about that,” I said, sidling up next to Dan and giving his butt a cheeky squeeze.

“Don’t be such a tease,” Dan groaned.

“As long as you behave,” I told him.

“Alright, I’ll be a good boy and help you build this igloo,” he told me, bending down to scoop up some snow, and for a change, not sticking his rear end up into the air.

Building a snow igloo was not an easy task. It was something I’d attempted in the past, but I’d never had much luck in getting the roof to stay up. I hoped that maybe this time, with a few more years under my belt and Dan to help me, that it might go a little better.

“Have you made an igloo before?” I asked Dan, as we started making the shape of the igloo, hopefully big enough for us both to squeeze inside.

“No, there’s literally never been this much snow in Wokingham,” he replied, “I’ve always wanted to though.”

“Looks like that wish is coming true this Christmas,” I told him, cheerily.

“Yeah, that’s like three good things that have happened: I got to spend Christmas with you, your family were nice to me and I’m at long last getting to build an igloo,“ he remarked.

“Three’s a start,” I told him, stopping snow-piling briefly to give him a hug, “Also you’ve got to have me cuddle you every night, which I enjoy at least, you had a tasty Christmas dinner, we’ve had a lazy sofa day… there’s loads of good things.”

“Uh-huh,” he agreed, somewhat uncertainty.

“Come on, let’s make this igloo a big success,” I told him, patting him on the bag and getting back to work, piling more snow onto the walls that were now starting to curve in to make the roof.

Eventually we were in the final stages of getting the roof together. That was the hard bit. Gravity certainly wasn’t on our side. After numerous attempts and piles of snow fallen at our feet, Dan and I eventually managed to get a roof that stayed up. It was a joint effort, with him holding up a chunk of snow, while I grabbed more snow to stick around the edges. It probably wasn’t the most stable creation, but I was proud of it. We made an igloo.

“Look what we’ve made,” I said to Dan, stepping back to appreciate it all the more and take a picture of it.

“I’m actually pretty proud of it,” he commented happily.

“Same,” I told him, “Should we try and get inside now?”

“Yeah,” Dan agreed, “Now that you have pictures of it in case we break it.”

Getting inside the igloo wasn’t terribly hard, but I had to be careful not to whack any of the walls by accident. It wasn’t exactly your standard igloo design as we didn’t quite have the tunnel entrance, but instead, just an open front, the walls curving in slightly, but leaving enough space for us to get through.

One I was safely inside and turned around, Dan joined me. It was a little cramped, but I guess it was cozy… in some respects. It was actually pretty cold, resulting in Dan and I having to share our body heat. I wrapped my arms around him in a hug and he hugged back.

I brushed my nose against his, “Pretty sure that’s an eskimo kiss,” I told him, “Seems appropriate since we’re in an igloo.”

“Really Phil?” Dan laughed, “Eskimo kisses?”

“They’re a thing, I swear,” I defended myself.

“I know,” Dan replied, “But only you would think to do that in an igloo.”

Brushing my nose up against his again first, I leant in for a proper kiss. Dan’s lips were cold against mine, and I could feel their surface was starting to go rough and chapped from the cold. Dan’s hand moved from gripping my jacket to holding the back of my head as he deepened the kiss.

Our kiss got interrupted very suddenly by a blow to the igloo from the outside. Almost immediately, the roof caved in covering us both from head to toe in snow. I brushed the snow from my eyes to reveal a cackling Martyn standing next to us and the remains of our igloo.

“Sorry,” he laughed, “It was too tempting. That’s what you get for making out with your boyfriend in a badly built igloo, Phil.”

“Marrrrtynn,” I complained, drawing out the syllables of his name, “It wasn’t badly built; we spent a lot of time on it, and now we’re covered in snow.”

“I’ll help you rebuild it if you want,” he said, “We can make it better too.”

“Nah, you can build it yourself,” I told him, hastily grabbing some snow and chucking it at him, “I think we’ll go inside before we freeze.”

Brushing the snow off myself, I stood up and reached a hand out to Dan; he was chuckling silently at our brotherly bickering, obviously quite amused. As Dan stood up, a snowball hit him square in the face, one that was probably aimed at me. He looked thoughtful for a second before scooping up a handful of snow and chucking it back at Martyn.

“Sorry Dan,” he apologised as the snow hit him, “That was meant for Phil.”

“S’okay,” Dan told him, “I don’t mind snowball fights, used to have the odd one with my brother if there was…”

Dan crumbled suddenly, unable to finish his sentence, the reality only now hitting him that he might not see his brother again, or at least for a long time. I reached my arms out and caught him before he sunk onto the ground, crying.

“It’s not your fault,” I said to Martyn, seeing him looking guilty, “Just give us a minute.”

“Sorry,” he said, patting Dan on the shoulder, before turning to head back inside the house.

“I might not ever see him again,” Dan sobbed, still resting his entire body weight on my arms, “I never even got to say goodbye.”

“I’m sure you’ll see him again,” I told him, sitting down in the snow and pulling him into my lap, “He’s not your parents. He’s our generation so I really doubt your sexuality will bother him.”

“I guess,” Dan said, “But I doubt they’ll let me see him. They’ll probably think I’ll make him gay or something.”

“You can text him or message him on facebook or something,” I suggested, “Let him know that you’re always there for him if he needs you. You never know, he could be gay or bi or something and need someone to talk to.”

“That’s an idea,” Dan replied, “I’ll do that later. Could you maybe help me figure out what to say though?”

“Yeah, of course,” I agreed, “Now, how about we go back inside and get a nice warm shower and some breakfast.”

Dan nodded, shivering slightly. We both got to our feet, both dusting snow from our now soaked joggies. I wounds my arm around Dan’s shoulder and we headed back in the direction of the house.

Stepping into the kitchen and shedding our footwear, I spotted Martyn lingering by the door into the hall. He had taken off his jacket and with it the small amount of snow from the two snowballs.

“You guys alright?” He asked, pointing the question to both of us, but I guess he was really wanting to know if Dan was okay.

“Yeah, I think we could both do with a warm shower though,” I replied, avoiding the real question. I didn’t want to say anything about Dan while he was there, with it being such a sensitive subject.

“I’ll leave you to it then,” he said, turning to open the fridge.

Dan and I went upstairs to my room, where we grabbed some dry clothes before heading to the bathroom. We peeled off our cold, wet clothes and left them in a heap on the floor, not even thinking twice about showering together as it had become a regular thing for us.

**(SMUT)**

The close proximity and the hot steamy water streaming over both of us made me start to wonder if this was really a good idea. Dan’s hair was curling and his cheeks were red and he looked so fucking hot; I could feel my face flushing every time I looked at him.

“Phil?” Dan said, suddenly resting his hand on my lower back, “You alright? You seem a bit… distracted.”

“Sorry,” I apologised, “Not gonna lie, you look really fuckin’ hot right now and I’m struggling to control myself.”

“Not gonna lie, I’m struggling to control myself too,” Dan admitted, recycling my words.

I looked Dan in the eyes, and seeing the lust in them was all it took to have my little friend getting excited.

“Dannn,” I groaned, “Look what you’ve done.”

“Snap,” Dan replied, with a laugh, now sporting his own erection.

“Ughh, what are we going to do?” I asked; surely my parents or my brother would hear if we did anything and I did not want that.

“Phil,” Dan whispered, his voice high, “I’m really fucking horny and all I want is you inside me and I swear on my life I’ll be quiet. The shower should cover up any other sounds.”

“Hmm,” I said, thinking about it. There was nothing I wanted more than to do what Dan was suggesting, but the potential awkward consequences were hovering in the back of my mind.

“Did you bring lube?” I asked him, in effect giving my reply, that yes, I was up for it.

“Ummm,” Dan said, “I hope so. I’ll check my toiletries bag; there’s probably some in there from the last time we went away together.”

I turned off the water, letting Dan get out the shower and make the short trip across the bathroom to his stuff. He bent over, and I was given an extremely good view. I took the opportunity to give my length a few strokes, getting it fully hard for what was to come. Even if he didn’t have any lube, I’d settle for a blow job.

Dan turned around triumphantly, a grin on his face and a small bottle in his hand. As he stepped back into the shower, I turned the water back on and took the bottle from him.

Squirting some out onto my fingers I asked Dan an important question, “Babe, when was the last time you stretched? I’m guessing back in London.”

“Yeah,” he confirmed, “I’ll be a bit tight, sorry.”

“That’s alright,” I told him, “I understand. Now, are you ready?”

“Yep,” Dan nodded, giving his consent.

I started with one finger, slowly pushing it inside of him, taking care to do it slowly as it was noticeable how long it had been. I waited until Dan said he was ready before adding another, and eventually a third. Once I felt he was suitably stretched, I pulled my fingers out and squeezed out some more lube, this time using it to coat my dick.

“Fuck, Phil, hurry up,” Dan muttered, just as I was about to check he was ready.

I pushed him up against the wall of the shower, giving me reasonable access. He grabbed the handle on the wall as something to hold onto and spread his legs apart further.

I lined myself up with his hole and slowly pushed myself in, listening to Dan’s little gasps as I stretched him further.

“Good?” I checked with him, before starting to move.

“Yep,” he replied breathily.

“Okay, remember, no sounds,” I reminded him, before pulling back out and pushing in again.

I started building up a rhythm, now slamming into Dan as quietly as I could, while he emitted small gasps of pleasure. I could feel myself getting closer and closer, Dan tightening around my length.

“Phil,” Dan whispered urgently, “Touch me.”

I re-angled myself slightly, now allowing myself to hit his prostate every time. I slid a hand around in front of his and wrapped it around his length, now simultaneously stroking him and stimulating his prostate from behind.

I could feel him coming undone before me, and it was only seconds before the pressure around my cock had me hitting my orgasm also. As I let myself cum deep inside him, Dan let out a hearty moan, “Uaaghhmm, fuck.”

I curled my free hand into a fist and roughly shoved as much of it as I could into his mouth, to stop him making any more noise. I really hoped that no one had heard that.

The pair of us stood silent, breathing heavily in the come-down from our orgasms. I removed my hand from Dan’s mouth, now satisfied he wasn’t about to make any more sounds that would give us away.

**(/SMUT)**

A knock on the door almost made me leap out of my skin.

“Phil? Dan? Are you both in there?” My mum’s voice asked.

“Yeah,” I answered, clamping my hand over Dan’s mouth, knowing his post-orgasm voice was not to be trusted, “We both got soaked in the snow and needed a warm shower.”

“Well that noise better not have been what it sounded like,” she remarked, “Otherwise I’ll be having a word with you, Philip.”

I swallowed nervously. She only called me Philip to annoy me when she was angry. Was there anyway of convincing her Dan’s moan was something else?

“What noise?” I said, putting on my best innocent voice, “Oh that one, Dan just slipped and stubbed his toe.”

“Is your toe alright, Dan? She asked, a hint of mischief in her voice, “I can get you some ice for it when you’re out.”

I quickly moved my hand away from Dan’s mouth to allow him to speak, hoping with all my might that his voice wouldn’t give away what had gone down only seconds before.

“No, you don’t need to do that, Mrs Lester,” he spoke politely, voice relatively normal, but struggling to keep a straight face, “It might bruise but I think it’ll be okay.”

“Right, I’ll let you get back to your shower,” she said, sounding like she possibly believed our lie, “Sorry for interrupting, I was just checking where you were because I couldn’t find either of you in the rest of the house.”

I waited until I heard the stairs creaking as she went down them, before letting out a sigh of relief.

“I think she believed us,” I told Dan, “We just need to make sure we clean up properly.”

“Really?” He questioned me.

“Yeah, I think so,” I confirmed, “Just maybe put on a little limp and she’ll believe the toe thing.”

“I don’t need to put one on,” he said, “I think I’m sore enough that I’ll have some sort of limp anyway.”

“Oh sorry,” I apologised, moving my hand to cup his arse-cheeks and pulling him into a hug.

“It’s fine; it was worth it,” he told me, “I needed that so bad.”

I nuzzled my face into his shoulder, “We should probably finish getting washed before we take suspiciously long.”

I grabbed the shower gel up from the floor and squirted a blob into both my hands and Dan’s. At home, I would have done the over-caring-boyfriend job properly and washed his hair for him, but here, I was aware of the time we were talking. We both washed oursleves quickly, saving us from any further arousal and stepped out of the shower into the arms of a warm towel.

The dry clothes we dressed in were t-shirts and pj-bottoms. I felt there was no need to go all out when we were just spending the day at home with my close family.

As was habit for me, I encouraged Dan to go commando under the pyjamas. My family wouldn’t judge him and I would rather he was comfortable. Still being a little tender from our fun in the shower, I’m sure being squeezed into tight boxers was the last thing he would want.

After making sure the lube was safely back in Dan’s bag and there was no stray cum on the walls of the shower, we left the bathroom, now warm and slightly damp, rather than cold and wet.

Making a quick stop in my room on the way, we made our way downstairs for breakfast. I put our wet clothes into the dryer, meaning that we could go back out in the snow later, once they’d dried. In the kitchen, I got two bowls out of a cupboard and set them on the counter. I noted how convenient it was, that Dan and I liked the same cereals as I’m sure the selection made him feel more at home.

“You go sit down,” I said to Dan, once he had poured himself a bowl of cereal, “I’ll make us coffee.”

In telling him to sit down, I was keeping up the act of the injured toe. My mum was in the next room and could probably hear every word I said.

“Thanks,” he thanked me, taking his bowl to the kitchen table, pulling out a chair and sitting down.

I watched him sit down and was glad to see that it didn’t look like he was in too much pain. There had been times in the past where I’d seen him wince as he sat down, particularly if he’d just gone a few days without any fingering or anything. Satisfied he was okay, I turned my attention back to making the coffee. When it was ready, I carried the two mugs over to the table, setting one down in front of Dan and the other at the place next to him.

I joined Dan at the table, eagerly spooning the cereal into my mouth to cure the hunger in my stomach. Igloo building and sex was a lot on an empty stomach so I was needing the food. Another bowl of cereal each later, we had re-energised our bodies enough to move to the living room and cuddle on the sofa.

Both my parents and my brother and his girlfriend were already there, watching some winter themed film with the fire on. It seemed the perfect way to spend the morning of boxing day, all cuddled up with your significant other in front of an open fire. Dan and I sat down on the free sofa and I immediately wrapped my arms around him and gently nudged my foot between his legs.

Neither my parents or my brother and his girlfriend were quite that close, but I didn’t let it get to me. I was going to be as sickeningly lovey-dovey as possible if it meant that Dan felt more at home.

The film came to an advert break only seconds after we had got comfortable and suddenly, I felt all eyes on us.

“Did you guys have a good time out in the snow?” my mum asked, looking at me and Dan.

“Yeah,” I told her, “We built an igloo which had an actual roof and everything. It was pretty great until Martyn knocked it down while we were inside.”

I looked over at Martyn who looked slightly guilty.

“Boys, will you two ever grow up?” she asked us sarcastically, as we were both grown men but who still acted like little boys when together.

“That’s brothers for you,” my dad commented.

Dan nuzzled a little closer to me, and I could sense he was thinking about his brother again. Finding his hand, I slowly intertwined our fingers and gave it a gentle squeeze. I hoped that nothing more would be said about brothers as it seemed even the tiniest things were affecting him at the moment.

“I never really fought with my brother,” Dan said hesitantly, adding to the conversation, “I guess it’s because our age gap is so big. We did have the odd snowball fight though.”

I hadn’t been expecting Dan to contribute but I was happy to see him talking about it his brother. Giving his hand a gentle squeeze, I looked him in the eye and gave him a small smile. He responded with a shaky but small smile, but I could see moisture in his eyes where he’d been struggling to hold back tears.

I could feel Martyn looking over at us. By now he’d probably realised that family was a sensitive topic for Dan at the moment. He swiftly changed the subject of the conversation to something else entirely, for which I shot him a grateful smile.

It wasn’t long before the adverts ended and the film came back on. Dan’s tears dried up and didn’t make any more appearances throughout the day.

I avoided calling it such, but we had a lot of family time, watching films and playing board games. It was warm, cosy and happy, and I was hoping it would all make Dan feel more at home.

—–

**Epilogue:**

**Phil’s POV:**

The next day, Dan and I made our journey back to London. I’d originally planned to spend another day or two up North with my family, but I’d made up my mind that it would be best for Dan to be back in London. Being with my family made him see what he was missing with his own family. We all did our best to be as welcoming as possible, but as I’d explained to my family when Dan was out of the room, there seemed to be a lot of little things which would trigger him into being really sad again. They agreed with me that being back in his usual environment with his normal routine would be the best thing for him at the moment.

We took the train from Manchester to London, and then a taxi back to our flat. It was there that we spent the next few days binge-watching TV, cuddling, eating, having the odd round of sex, and just generally hibernating. We made the most of the remainder of our holiday, away from youtube and younow; just the two of us being as coupley as possible without outing ourselves to the world.

It would take time for Dan to recover to his usual bubbly self, but he would get there eventually. It would be a harsh blow to anyone, to lose their family like that, but I let him lean on me as much as he needed to. Hopefully one day they would see past their homophobic beliefs and accept Dan. Even if he didn’t go running back to them, it would still be a positive step. All it took was a little optimism.


End file.
